Do you trust the new ruling that airline pilots are now going to be allowed to work until age 65, reverting the policy to what it was twenty years ago?
I think that it should not be just a set date, but based on passing the approval of first officer and flight crew. If a pilot gets written up by say -- six -- flight crew members, he or she should be given exact performance testing in real flight conditions and the criteria should be exact and demanding.
As a sixty year old student pilot, I am enjoying flying again after taking a 42 year hiatus. It is much more enjoyable now than when I was sixteen to eighteen. Do any of you pilots think you are better or worse as you get older? I am a better pilot now than I was at seventeen.
Originally posted by StarValleyWyTests in Australia have shown that men under the age of 25 have problems estimating distance.
Do you trust the new ruling that airline pilots are now going to be allowed to work until age 65, reverting the policy to what it was twenty years ago?
I think that it should not be just a set date, but based on passing the approval of first officer and flight crew. If a pilot gets written up by say -- six -- flight crew members, he or she should be ...[text shortened]... think you are better or worse as you get older? I am a better pilot now than I was at seventeen.
They concluded this after tests done because so many young men there were dying in car accidents.
And if it goes for cars it seems to me that it could go for planes as well.
Originally posted by shavixmirMaybe they estimated the distance correctly, but underestimated their cars' stopping speed...?
Tests in Australia have shown that men under the age of 25 have problems estimating distance.
They concluded this after tests done because so many young men there were dying in car accidents.
And if it goes for cars it seems to me that it could go for planes as well.
65 seems a bit old for an airline pilot with 400 passengers lives on the line, I'd say 55 would be a better cut-off. At 65, eyesight, reaction time, concentration, ability to stay focused for long periods without fatigue, and a number of other problems associated with age can start to accumulate.
Originally posted by Sam The ShamConsidering how little a pilot in charge of any 7 series boeing or 3 series airbus is required to call on their senses unaided by state of the art telemetry and/or computer aided control systems, where the vast majority of these planes can and do take off fly and land by themselves it seems a moot point how old these pilots are. In fact it would seem with experience and age comes the tendency to do less which so often is more. How often do you think the hot landings you may occasionally experience would be as a result of the pilot disengaging the autopilot in order to maintain their flying competence? Anecdotally, I have been told that in most cases the flight control systems handle these huge beasts in a manner that no pilot can consistently fly, so it would seem that it hardly matters the age or visual acuity of the pilot, other than they display an adequate ability to submerge themselves into the totality of the whole flight control system package.
65 seems a bit old for an airline pilot with 400 passengers lives on the line, I'd say 55 would be a better cut-off. At 65, eyesight, reaction time, concentration, ability to stay focused for long periods without fatigue, and a number of other problems associated with age can start to accumulate.
The notion than any pilot flying a big bird needs the ability to fly by the seat of their pants in a barnstorming style bravado, has probably watched too many WW2 movies and describes a skill set that has little or nothing to do with running the cockpit/office of a modern jet airliner.
Originally posted by kmax87Sometimes you just make me tired all over.
Considering how little a pilot in charge of any 7 series boeing or 3 series airbus is required to call on their senses unaided by state of the art telemetry and/or computer aided control systems, where the vast majority of these planes can and do take off fly and land by themselves it seems a moot point how old these pilots are. In fact it would seem with exp ...[text shortened]... l set that has little or nothing to do with running the cockpit/office of a modern jet airliner.
Originally posted by kmax87hmm, every jet I ever flew, we NEVER let it auto land, in fact I would be scared to death if it did. and I never seen an auto pilot that could take off either, they can only land if certified for CAT3 approaches, however, they cannot land nearly as smooth as a human.
Considering how little a pilot in charge of any 7 series boeing or 3 series airbus is required to call on their senses unaided by state of the art telemetry and/or computer aided control systems, where the vast majority of these planes can and do take off fly and land by themselves it seems a moot point how old these pilots are. In fact it would seem with exp ...[text shortened]... l set that has little or nothing to do with running the cockpit/office of a modern jet airliner.
Also you'd be surprised at how there's more to flying then just pressing buttons... try navigating around level 3 thunderstorms, hardcore instrument conditions, with icing and turbulence, even with the auto pilot running, it can really exhaust a 2 crew operation pretty quickly.
I am 63 years old, and loss of alertness and stamina is quite observable to me, since around age 60. I consider that I am still a safe vehicle driver, and willingly carry passengers in my own car, but on no account would I even consider driving a school bus or any form of public transport, where the passenger does not have the opportunity to assess my driving capability for themselves. I think the same should apply to pilots flying in airspace used by commercial passenger flights. Private piloting in non-commercial areas is a different proposition entirely.
I have flown with a 65 year old pilot (non airline) and he was the most awesome pilot I ever met, at around 30,000 hours behind his belt, it seemed like he could just think a command, and it happened. These 65 year old pilots is WAY safer then a 250 hour pilots that airlines are hiring now days that dont have a clue how to fly, besides, the new 65 age rule says that there has to be another younger qualified pilot with him, so its not like lives are in danger. They wouldn't pass it in law if it wasn't completely safe, and they still have to go through a tough medical exam every six months.
And from what I seen, 65 year old pilots are sharper then the average 65 year old. 😛 hehe
Originally posted by flyUnityI may be misinformed. I suppose my idea of automation stems from a thought experiment of how planes would take off and land in conditions of atrocious weather with near zero forward visibility. My understanding was that if they were not being fully automated for take off and landing for the very least you could do it with instruments all inside of the cockpit, which hardly suggests a better than average visual ability. From what I understand the 747 for example has gone from 900 odd gauges and switches in the beginning to 300 in recent years and with every new plane, advances in glass cockpit design mean less and less visual clutter for the pilot.
hmm, every jet I ever flew, we NEVER let it auto land, in fact I would be scared to death if it did. and I never seen an auto pilot that could take off either, they can only land if certified for CAT3 approaches, however, they cannot land nearly as smooth as a human.
Also you'd be surprised at how there's more to flying then just pressing buttons... try ...[text shortened]... ng, even with the auto pilot running, it can really exhaust a 2 crew operation pretty quickly.
Even with flying into storms I thought the onboard radar with their ability to pin point the location and intensity of adverse weather conditions made it possible for pilots to plot a course as clear as you could roll a ball down a bowling alley. It would seem the most important skill may not be in whether one could make it through a storm but whether one takes the decision to fly at all! These decisions may be better made by those with more not less experience.
As much as things can happen frighteningly quickly when they are going wrong, you would have to concede that for the most part flying would be fairly routine.
Originally posted by StarValleyWyI'm more frightened by the notion of 17-year-olds flying airplanes! Maybe we need a *how young is too young* thread as well.
Do you trust the new ruling that airline pilots are now going to be allowed to work until age 65, reverting the policy to what it was twenty years ago?
I think that it should not be just a set date, but based on passing the approval of first officer and flight crew. If a pilot gets written up by say -- six -- flight crew members, he or she should be ...[text shortened]... think you are better or worse as you get older? I am a better pilot now than I was at seventeen.
Originally posted by Sam The ShamAnd the Smugminded Boor of the Year Award goes to?...
Understatement Of The Year Award goes to Kmax
What I would propose instead is a novel idea admittedly but you might like to try it. Information of interest that educates and informs. It might take some practice getting used to it but you might even learn something yourself in the process.